BJP asks PM to raise stapled visa, border issues during China visit

New Delhi, Oct 22 (ANI): The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should raise the stapled visa issue and New Delhi's concerns about repeated border violations by Chinese troops during his visit to China, commencing from today.

"We would expect the Prime Minister of India when he goes to China that he understands that he has the backing of 125 crore people. He represents the might of these people. The Bharatiya Janata Party stands by him as a responsible opposition and he will (have to) take up the issues in the strongest possible manner pertaining to the continuous border violations by China. Also, the trade imbalance which is hugely in favour of China must be restored to equity at least," said Captain Abhimanyu.

"And also, there are issues pertaining to the water sharing between India and China. We would also expect the Prime Minister to take up the issue of stapled visas which China has been consistently issuing to the people of Arunachal Pradesh and India. We expect the Prime Minister to take up the matter of continuous Chinese obstacles in the oil and gas exploration," he added.

The Prime Minister will arrive in Beijing today on a two-day visit from Russian capital Moscow.

He will hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang and call on Chinese President Xi Jinping

Several agreements in areas like trade, economy, culture and people-to-people contacts are expected to be signed by both sides during the visit.

This is the Prime Minister's second visit to Beijing. He had previously visited China in January 2008. (ANI)